Shinobi: Those Who Endure
by TurboAce
Summary: In an AU where the Sasuke Retrieval Mission took a different route how will this affect the world of Naruto
1. Chapter 1

Naruto vs. Sasuke Final valley

Naruto had activated the kyuubi's chakra and was dominating Sasuke

"Now let's go home! If you don't come to your senses then I'm going to have to break every bone in your body" said a kyuubi enhanced Naruto

"Shutup!" responded Sasuke

'I need to end this the guys need my help' Naruto had thought concerned over his friends, He quickly did a quick kyuubi enhanced punch to Sasuke's skull to knock him out, he lunged him over his shoulder and decided to return to the village and to help his comrades

On his way back he had caught up to Rock Lee and left a clone with him to help him out and he eventually did the same with Kiba, Shikamaru Neji and Choji

He then arrived at the gate ready to leave Sasuke in the villages care and on his way to Hokage tower he ran into Ino

"Oh my is that Sasuke-kun!" said a surprised Ino

"I need a favor can you give Sasuke to grandma I need to go back on my mission and tell her to get some medical ninjas ready Choji and Neji looked really beat up" said Naruto giving Sasuke to a surprised Ino and turned to return to his friends "Thanks!" leaving a dumbfounded Ino

As he was returning he ran into Shino who appeared to just come back from a mission but was fine nonetheless

"Hello Naruto you look like you're in a hurry" said a monotone Shino

"No time for this I'm on a mission and they need my help I need to go" said a rushed Naruto

"Maybe I can help"

"Yeah sure you can help Neji he's fighting these spiders things I need to help Choji I think my clone was dispelled" said Naruto who took off running with Shino right beside him

With Choji

He had just used the red pill after Naruto's clone took a hit for him and defeated Jirobo he sat down next to a stump to rest and almost hunched over until something caught him, it was Naruto

"Hey Choji you look pretty beat up need some help" said Naruto

"Hehe thanks Naruto" said a weak Choji as he was hunched over Naruto's shoulder "You should help the guys first I don't want to delay you"

"I'm just a clone, I have Shino helping Neji and the real me will probably go help Shikamaru" said the Naruto clone as he took off towards the village with Choji

With Neji

Neji was almost struck by a potentially deadly arrow luckily Shino's bugs were able to eat the arrows substance before it hit Neji

"I'm here to help" said Shino as his bugs took on the onslaught of spiders, arrows and web "Naruto sent me"

"Naruto huh I need to send my thanks" Neji had said knowing that arrow could have been lethal

"My insects don't like this substance let's take him out quickly" Shino said

Neji went after Kidomaru and easily took him out since he couldn't focus 100% on just Neji anymore with Shino and his insects distracting him

"Alright you need some medical attention let's go" said Shino as he grabbed Neji and they left towards the village

Shikamaru was helped by Temari who had taken down Tayuya were on their way to help Kiba and his newly arrived comrade Kankuro as Naruto went to help Rock Lee

With Rock Lee

Rock Lee was initially helped by Gaara but was later helped by Kakashi who had defeated Kimimaro

"Oh hey Naruto I see you succeeded in returning Sasuke" said Kakashi who had walked up to Naruto, who he had patted on the head "Good job"

"Thanks sensei!"

Later on (about a day or two) after everyone has been taken care of

Hokage Tower

"Shikamaru! tell me about the mission" ordered Tsunade

"Well the mission was a success, we were met with some resistance from the Sound villages sound four which had five members luckily with the addition of Rock Lee we were able to divide our numbers to allow Naruto to defeat Sasuke and return him to the village" said Shikamaru with some bandages all over him

"Ok now Naruto what did you do after you defeated Sasuke" asked/ordered Tsunade

"Well I knocked him out and went towards the village, I left a clone with each of the guys for some help but I continued towards the village, I somehow had a feeling that Choji and Neji needed my help so I left Sasuke in Ino's hands as I met up with Shino who had decided to help on the mission just like Lee had"

"Good job, now can anyone tell what happen after that"

"Shino helped me with Kidomaru as Naruto returned Choji to the village" added Neji

"The sand siblings helped us with the other three with the addition of Kakashi-sensei" added Kiba

"Good now since was borderline a S-rank but classified as an A-rank you all have shown your skills, teamwork and devotion to your village" thanked Tsunade "That is why I would like all of you besides Shikamaru of course to get a field promotion to chunin"

"What!"

"I wasn't here for your chunin exams but, Kiba Inuzuka your fight against Naruto was really well executed and would defeat some chunin with it just watch your cockyness that is why you will be promoted"

"Thank you lady Tsunade" said Kiba feeling really humbled

"Shino Aburame you unfortunately were unable to fight in the final stage but I hear you still fought your opponent and defeated him during the invasion and your strategy during your prelim fight with Zaku was splendid definitely worth chunin status"

"Thank you"

"Choji didn't do anything spectacular during the prelims but he defeated a jonin of superior strength on this mission and that deserves some recognition, Shikamaru pass on the news to him when he is fully recovered"

"Of course" he responded

"Neji Hyuga, according to your sensei you could of been a chunin around a year ago but you held back a year for your teammates, the way you beat Hinata was a bit aggressive from what I hear but you still displayed your skills efficiently, your fight with the knucklehead here showed that you have decent in battle analysis good qualities of a chunin the only reason you weren't promoted before is because I hear you have a little bit cockiness in you as well but I hear you've gotten better since then so you are promoted as well"

"Thank you Lady Hokage" said Neji

"Then we got this knucklehead, from what I heard you didn't beat Kiba in the most graceful of ways however you used deception against an opponent who primarily uses their senses which is noteable, against Neji you adapted to scenario the best you could have in your position, you managed to beat Gaara first hand where others have not and that helps display your strength at least but that isn't why you will get promoted" informed Tsunade

"Then what is grandma?" asked Naruto

"Your promoted because of the way you handled the mission" said Tsunade "Naruto what was going through your head during the mission?"

 _Flashback_

 _"I never really liked Sasuke, but all the same, he's a member of Konoha; he's a comrade and I'll put my life on the line to help him, that's the way of our village. I know I usually seem like a pretty lazy guy but not today, because now I'm responsible for your lives too." Shikamaru had said_

 _Flashback end_

"That I needed to get Sasuke back and to make sure my friends were safe" responded Naruto "Sasuke is my friend my comrade and I had to give it my all to make sure that I returned him and make sure my friends were not going to get too hurt"

"And that's why you are getting promoted because you carried out the mission and still took care of your comrades just like a chunin captain or even a jonin should do" said Tsunade as she handed out the final chunin vest

"Rock Lee will get one as well once he fully recovers make sure to hold off on the news alright don't want him to get too excited" said Tsunade seeing a bunch of heads nod in acceptance knowing how passionate Lee can be "Alright you are all dismissed oh and Naruto, Jiraiya wants to see you"

"Alright see ya granny!" said Naruto as he left her office happy with his new chunin vest

With Jiraiya and Naruto

"So kid I heard you retrieved the Uchiha kid with minimum casualties and that you were all against jonin and all got promoted pretty impressive kid" said Jiraiya 'he managed to do what I failed to do'

"Thanks ero-sennin!" responded an excited Naruto wearing his new chunin vest

Jiraiya then turned serious on him quickly "I'm taking you on a training trip"

"What? what are you talking about?"

"I want train you as my apprentice but since I'm needed outside the village a lot you'll need to come with me" said Jiraiya

"Ok any other reasons?"

"Well the Akatsuki will come here to look for you so if you're constantly on the move they won't attack the village or be able to track you" added Jiraiya

"So you're training me so I can be strong enough to hold my own" confirmed Naruto

"Yes I already have your schedule laid out for you" teased Jiraiya holding a list out of Naruto's reach"

"Let me see let me see!"

"I'll just tell you, first we are going to make it so you can use the rasengan with one hand, I know the clone helps but sometimes you won't be able to summon a clone because you might only have one hand available"

"Alright what else?"

"We'll then make sure you have the essentials such as chakra control solid taijutsu and able to dispel genjutsu" said Jiraiya now looking at his list "then we'll improve your shadow clones and your transformation and substitution jutsu and perhaps work on your summoning jutsu"

"Anything else?" he repeated himself

"Then the rest of the time will be on the nine tails chakra-"

"-no I'm not using the foul chakra, I can barely control myself when I use it sure it's a nice power up but I can barely control myself if I use too much" interrupted Naruto as he remembers how feral he was against Sasuke

"I see 'maybe I should just skip ahead to the final stage' alright Naruto what if I said that you can use the nine tails' chakra without the influence of the nine tails" offered Jiraiya

"...I'll do it but I won't rely on it" conceded Naruto not knowing the full meaning behind what JIraiya was saying

"Good good you're not supposed to, since the nine tails chakra is a powerup" said Jiraiya

"What do you mean?"

"Let's say you are 5 and the nine tails makes you 5 times stronger making you a 25 with the chakra of the nine tails but if you go against someone that is a 30 you will still lose but if you're a 7 then you will be a 35 and be able to beat your opponent so it depends how strong you are by yourself" explained Jiraiya 'That's only true up to a certain stage though'

"So it's like if a baby had the nine tails chakra and went crazy I could still be able to stop the baby just because the baby itself isn't all that strong" said Naruto

"Good now you're using that head of yours you can be a decent shinobi yet" joked Jiraiya

"Ha! thanks ero-sennin" thanked Naruto "Hey!" realizing the insult

'Still not that bright yet' "Naruto were leaving tomorrow do you want to tell your friends about the nine tails or do you want them to figure it out themselves"

"...'should I tell them?' no I'll let them figure it out themselves but I give Kakashi-sensei or grandma permission to tell them if they ask about it somehow" answered Naruto

"Good now go get packed"

The next day at the gate

Naruto and Jiraiya were almost at the gate ready to leave but they saw a figure at the gate seemingly waiting for them

"I see you have someone who wants to say goodbye" said Jiraiya with a pervy smile on as he drifted away from the pair

"Hinata?! you came to see me off?" asked Naruto surprised that someone came to see him off

"Um...yes…" stuttered Hinata

"Thanks Hinata you really are the best"

"C-congrats on becoming a chunin Naruto-kun"

"Oh thanks, you'll become one really soon you are really strong after all"

"I'm... not that s-strong"

"Oh sure you are, you're the strongest girl I know" he said making Hinata blush and out of embarrassment she handed him a scroll "Whats this?"

"It's a scroll about Konoha" she said "It should give you all you need to know about Konoha"

"This is great and all but why?"

"For when… for when you become Hokage" she said which surprised Naruto "You will need to know all about Konoha if you want to be Hokage Naruto-kun" she had added with more confidence than before

"You really think I can become Hokage" he asked

"Of course your strong, smart, nice and you are gaining more followers like me so I do believe you can be Hokage" Hinata said with confidence

"Thanks Hinata you are the best so when I come back I'll be strong enough to protect all of you"

"Protect us?"

'Crap!' "You can ask Kakashi-sensei about it I have to go, thanks for the gift Hinata" Naruto said as if he was in a hurry, as he and Jiraiya left the village

"Are you ready kid?"

"Yeah!"

"First stop the next town for some chicks!"

"Ero-sennin!"


	2. Chapter 2

Two and a half years later

Two figures were walking down a road towards the gates of Konoha. One was significantly taller with a lot of hair, while the other was shorter but no one could really call him short.

"Hey is that?"

"It seems that way"

One had white hair the other had blonde hair. One had long hair the other short.

"Come on I wanna go see him as soon as possible"

"Be patient if you can see them they can't be too far away"

They both had significant facial features, one had red markings coming from his eyes down his face while the other had three whiskers on each cheek.

"Well we're finally here" the one with white hair had said

"Yeah..." The blonde one had said as he disappeared

"What the? Where Naruto go?" Asked one of chunin gate guards

" I don't see him anymore Kiba, try smelling him out"

"Good thinking Shino" as Kiba sniffed around until he turn around looking towards the village pointing up with shock

Shino turned around to see what Kiba was pointing at until he too was surprised at what he was seeing as Jiraiya made it too the gate admiring what Naruto's friends were looking at

"Naruto Uzumaki is back home everyone!" Yelled Naruto from on top of Hokage Monument

Everyone heard the voice which made quite a lot of people turn their heads with only a few ignoring him

What Naruto didn't realize is that ever since the chunin exams he had been growing support and it had significantly increased ever since the success of the Sasuke retrieval mission with him being the main cause of the success

Naruto decided to go get some food so of course he made his way towards his favorite food place Ichiraku Ramen.

Ichiraku Ramen

"Hey Naruto my boy how have you've been?" Asked Teuchi

"I've been doing great old man how's the shop holding up?"

"It's holding but we missed that bottomless pit of yours" he answered

"Well, start me off with one bowl of miso ramen"

"You got it Naruto!"

"Hey old man where's Ayame?"

"She's with her boyfriend on a walk but she should be back soon enough"

"Really I always thought that she-!"

"-Boss!" As the three figures tackled Naruto down from his seat

"Konohamaru, Moegi, Udon please get off you all are getting too big to pile on top of me"

"We're sorry but we missed you" they all whined

"Boss let me show you my improved jutsu" said Konohamaru preparing his jutsu

"If you show him that sexy jutsu I'm going to smack you" threatened an enraged Moegi

'Reminds me of Sakura' Naruto sweat dropped

"Boss did you hear we all passed our genin exams" said Udon

Naruto then noticed that only Konohamaru had on a headband

"Then where's yours and Moegis headband?" He asked

"Moegi decided to become a field medical nin so she doesn't have hers visible all the time while Udon is considering joining anbu" answered Konohamaru who seemed to be upset about something probably because he won't be on a team with his best friends

"Really that's great, good job you two" Naruto said as he patted each on the head making them smile "So Konohamaru who's your sensei and who are your teammates?"

"I won't get a team until the next class since our class became odd numbered since these two stopped being regular genini so for the moment I'm being apprenticed by that pervert"

'Ebisu' "Well I'll see what I can do for you I have to meet with granny anyways"

"Foods ready!"

"After I eat" he concluded as he sat back down with the three joining him

Later at Hokage Tower

"So Naruto and Jiraiya how was the trip?" Asked Tsunade with Shizune by her side

"The trip went along excellently we covered even more than I had planned" said Jiraiya

"Mmhmm Ero-sennin even said I'm stronger than Kakashi-sensei now"

"So at least jonin strength good, I might have to recommend you for a promotion" she said

"Recommend Lady Tsunade?" Asked Shizune

"Way back we used to have jonin exams like we do with the chunin exams, however many later went against it when they realized that a potential jonin's techniques will be revealed publicly losing their element of surprise since others would be able to see it and know how to beat them so now if you get a certain number of recommendations from current jonin then they can be promoted to jonin or special jounin depending on how many recommendations they get" answered Tsunade

"Oh that's right that's how Neji got promoted" remembered Shizune

"Neji is a jonin!" Said a surprised Naruto

"Yeah all of your friends have made it to chunin with out of those only Neji, and Sasuke have been promoted to Jounin however Shikamaru's a special jonin in strategy" said Tsunade

"That's so cool hey ero-sennin can you recommend me for jonin?!" Pleaded Naruto

"I can but-"

"- here Lady Tsunade here are the papers you asked...Naruto!" Said a girl with pink hair

"Hey Sakura I'm back!" Said Naruto nonchalantly

"You idiot tell us before you leave for almost three years" complained Sakura as she got up in Naruto's face clearly upset

"I'm sorry it was kinda last minute" he said sheepishly

"Well now that you are here that helps brings me to my attention the next order of business your test Naruto" said Tsunade

"My test?"

"Actually it's team sevens test you three will go up against your opponent later on today"

"You three lady Tsunade?" Sakura asked as the door opened

"You needed me Lady Hokage?" Asked the new voice "is that the idiot"

"Is that the bastard"

You could immediately feel the tension in the air, sparks seemed to fly off between Naruto and Sasuke they didn't see themselves as superior to each other in any way but as equals but this only recreates a renewed rivalry between them

"Come in Sasuke" Tsunade said "As I was saying team seven you will rejoin as a team and do a challenge against your opponent"

"Our opponent?" Asked Sakura

"He's right outside"

Team seven looked outside the window and noticed a figure just sitting on the roof

"Yo man Naruto you've gotten big"

"Kakashi-sensei!"

"Yes your opponent is going to be Kakashi this way we can see how far your teamwork has come" Tsunade said

"Meet me at our old training grounds in three hours then we will begin your test" said Kakashi as he disappeared

"So yes Sakura you are done being a medical nin you are now a field medical nin and Sasuke you're done with Anbu, you are all going to rejoin as team seven the attacking three man cell, with Sasuke being a jonin you shouldn't need a fourth member unless necessary" Tsunade explained

"Yes!"

"Well that is all I need you for, for the moment go prepare for your test and Naruto go get reacquainted with the village"

"Yes!"

"Oh and granny I need a new vest I kinda outgrew my other one" Naruto had said as he took out a scroll and unsealed it to see a smaller battle damage chunin vest

"No problem you can get a new one whenever you get a chance to order a new one with the size measurements and all"

"Thanks granny!"

Team 7 left to get reacquainted with themselves and Shizune went to get Naruto's new vest, Jiraiya and Tsunade stayed to talk

"So what exactly got accomplished during your training trip" asked Tsunade

"Like I described to you and Naruto of what it would entail,he can do the rasengan with one hand and he managed to complete and improve it, I improved his taijutsu and genjutsu, this helped him in his use of shadow clones plus the substitution and transformation jutsu however he still can't do a basic clone jutsu but we expected that"

"Of course"

"I improved his concentration so now he can summon whichever toad he wants instead if it being random, I also taught him some elemental ninjutsu to help with his range"

"Which elements!"

"Well he has a primary for wind and secondary for water so I taught him water since I don't know any wind so I just had him do the leaf cutting exercise but I also taught him a fire jutsu or two to help with his collaboration with the toads"

"I can have Asuma help him with the wind style if he chooses so is that all you did because if that's it-"

"Hold up princess I wasn't done, I had the toads start teaching him sage jutsu but he isn't done with it yet, I helped him in the intelligence department but I'm not saying he's a genius but he's smart enough and we mastered IT"

"Wait you don't mean?" Tsunade had said intrigued

"Yes it went a lot easier than we had anticipated" Jiraiya said

"Well that's good was there any problems on the trip along the way?"

"Well there was this one shinobi that gave both of us trouble he really made Naruto feel like shit but that was early in the trip he's probably over it by now"

'A shinobi that gave let alone gave Jiraiya trouble but with Naruto as well... scary'

With Team Seven

They were catching up with each other since even Sasuke and Sakura haven't seen each other that often this was their opportunity to all get to know each other again

Sakura was wearing a regular red top with her Haruno circle on the back, with black shorts with a grey apron skirt over it along with black boots, gloves and grey elbow protectors along with her signature red headband on her head

Sasuke wore a tight black open jacket with the Uchiha crest on the top left with a black shirt underneath, the jacket was strapped across his stomach twice, along with a regular belt which is where he held his kunai pouch,he also wore black baggy pants which were tucked into his boots, he also wore arm and leg guards presumably from Anbu, and he a sword strapped onto his back

Naruto not having his flak jacket just wore a regular navy blue shirt similar to Kakashi with matching gloves, he also had wore navy blue pants with a third of them being orange thanks to the design, along with black sandals with a black headband now strapped across his arm like Shikamaru

"So Sasuke how was Anbu?" asked Sakura

"It was fine it was good training since I learned a lot while there" he answered "How was your trip?"

"It was super fun me and ero-sennin went everywhere even the sand village and guess what Gaara's the Kazekage isn't that great!"

"Gaara!" Sakura said surprised

'I knew he was strong but to become a kage at such a young age he must have improved a lot' thought Sasuke

"So how was training with grandma?" asked Naruto

"You really shouldn't call Lady Tsunade that!"

"Well she IS old!"

"Whatever Lady Tsunade is a really strict teacher but it came with results" 'I definitely caught up with you two now'

"Thats cool, hey is that Shikamaru and Ino?"

"Ugh!" Sakura grunted

"SASUKE!" yelled Ino running towards Sasuke

'Well here we go Sakura's going to stop Ino from even touching Sasuke then they'll start arguing' thought Naruto

Ino had ran right into Sasuke's arms but surprisingly Sasuke caught her and spun her around with a smile on his face and neither Shikamaru nor Sakura was surprised by this albeit Sakura seemed slightly annoyed but not surprised

"Um can someone explain what I missed?" asked a very confused Naruto

"Well after you left, Sasuke needed to get reacquainted with a village kinda as a loyalty test so Kakashi-sensei talked to him and suggested some things and one of those things was to get some more people to care about besides your team and conveniently enough Ino was right around the corner and out of nowhere Sasuke asked her out and they have been together ever since" answered Shikamaru

"Yup me and Sasuke have been together for over two years now and it's all thanks to you Naruto" said Ino with a wink

"Hehe no problem" said Naruto 'No wonder Sakura hasn't been all over Sasuke'

"Oh so I heard that Konohamaru needs a teacher Naruto are you going to help him out" asked Shikamaru

"Perhaps but don't I have to be a jonin to apprentice a genin" responded Naruto as the group of five continued walking

"Well yeah but you just need a few recommendations and I'm sure Sasuke,Neji even Asuma will recommend you if you show what you can do" said Shikamaru "Assuming you're worthy of being a jonin"

"Well I guess we'll see in a hour" said Sakura

"Hm?"

"Yeah if you haven't heard our team is going to be reunited and our test is going up against Kakashi-sensei" Sakura explained

"Kakashi-sensei?! But he's the top jonin in the village he's a legend how are you two going to help Sasuke take him" said Ino making both Naruto and Sakura sweat drop

"Ino I'm pretty sure Naruto and I can take sensei on ourselves right Naruto?" said Sakura

"Believe it!"

"Well then I guess I gotta go make sure you guys can beat him right Shikamaru? Ino said

"Troublesome we'll see you guys later"

Team Sevens Training Grounds

"Well I see you all made it" said Kakashi as he sees his old team looking all grown up together once again "I hope you remember the rules"

"There are two bells that we have to get"

"Whoever doesn't get a bell fails"

"We have three hours to get the bells"

"Good you remembered, but numbers don't matter here whoever gets the bells everyone passes" said Kakashi as he raises his headband revealing his sharingan "I guess I have to step it up this time"


	3. Chapter 3

"You may start" signalled Kakashi

Naruto did his signature shadow clone jutsu and 20 Naruto's then appeared around Kakashi

"The numbers still somehow surprises me" commented Sasuke

"Yeah but they aren't meant for combat they are meant for distraction or espionage" said Sakura as she had chakra cover her hand as Sasuke seemed to disappear

Kakashi was having a harder time than he had expected against Naruto's clones he only managed to get rid of two, Kakashi was then kicked up by a couple of Naruto's clone up into the air

'Uzumaki Barrage? all I have to do is block' thought Kakashi as he saw a Naruto above him getting ready for a kick

However another Naruto appeared from underneath with the leaf shadow dance technique, he then grabbed Kakashi in a tight hold and began to spin him down similar to the primary lotus but instead of like a tornado he spun him horizontally so it would be hard to tell who was going to hit the ground first

'A mix between his Uzumaki Barrage and the primary lotus, we both spin this way so I won't know who's going to hit the ground first but since he's using clones he could retract his clone whenever he wants so it's almost a 100% chance I'm going to get hurt' thought Kakashi analyzing his technique

'Not only has his clones timing got better but also his Taijutsu he's around my skill he might even better than Lee' thought Sasuke from afar waiting for his time to strike

Naruto as he was spinning he saw Sakura ready for her chance right underneath them, he then used the momentum to throw Kakashi down even faster towards Sakura was readying a chakra enhanced punch, but Kakashi as he was falling had noticed this and performed the substitution jutsu just before Sakura hit him

"Damn so close" said an upset Sakura as she punched the ground since her momentum kept her going towards the ground, the impact tore up much of the landscape around them even dispelling Naruto's clones

'Scary' thought Naruto

Kakashi had fled towards the pond nearby as he tried to search for Sasuke who didn't take long for him to appear as Sasuke took out his sword to try and slice Kakashi who dodged easily

'The sword is a problem since he'll have an easier time getting the bells because of his reach' Kakashi thought as he brought out a kunai to block Sasuke's attacks

As Sasuke and Kakashi were in their kenjutsu duel, Sasuke threw his sword at Kakashi who had dodged it as it embed itself in a tree, Sasuke then went through some hand seals and lightning covered his hand

'Chidori! But it seems different'

"Chidori current"

Chidori current when he uses the lightning from the chidori and sends the lightning across the ground in a small general area

Kakashi once again substituted once he realized what the technique was however he had substituted into Sakura area which was by a river

Kakashi got on the opposite side of the river as Naruto and Sasuke rejoined Sakura

"Well you all have improved but it time to show you all my specialty" said Kakashi as he flew through hand seals

A water dragon then erupted out of the water with Kakashi's Water Dragon Jutsu, Team seven dodged the dragon getting only slightly wet, Kakashi then used earth style headhunter jutsu on Sasuke to drag him underground besides his head, then followed up by using Fire style Fireball jutsu to push away Naruto and Sakura

Naruto used Water style raging waves to counter the fireball which create steam which allowed team seven to retreat for some regrouping

"Water style then Earth style followed quickly by fire style how do we beat someone who can throw jutsu out so fast" said Sakura

"He has to have a weakness but he is the copy shinobi" said Sasuke "He's as smart as Shikamaru, has better senses than Kiba, his sharingan is around the same level as mine and his taijutsu is better than Lee's plus he has had more experience than all of us combine"

"We already know his weakness" said Naruto reassuringly as he put his hands on each of their shoulders

"We do?"

"Remember when he went against Zabuza the first time" said Naruto as he watches his teammates nod "Kakashi-sensei passed out from over using his sharingan, so all we have to do is strain his eye to the point where he can't keep up any more"

"He's right unlike me he's not an Uchiha so the sharingan drains more than usual plus it's only in one eye so his other eye won't be as strong on the right side" said Sasuke more confident in their abilities

"So we need strain his sharingan how do we do that" asked Sakura

"We just keep him busy whether it's with direct attacking or laying traps around there's three of us so we can take turns if we need to but we can't allow him to rest any longer" said Naruto as he started forming a rasengan in one hand

Naruto launched himself towards a tree about 7 meters away and drilled the rasengan into the tree revealing Kakashi behind it who had jumped away into the clearing only to be engaged in combat with both Sasuke and Sakura

'Well they found out my weakness which is stamina but can they wear me out before the time limit' thought Kakashi

Half an hour later

Kakashi was sprawled out on the floor semi-unconscious as team seven held the bells

'They completely wore me out' thought Kakashi as he watched his former students chatting amongst themselves about their victory

Tsunade, Shizune, Jiraiya along with the rest of the rookie nine along with Asuma and Kurenai had appeared before them

"Congratulations you guys, you took down Kakashi-sensei" said Kiba with Akamaru barking

"Thanks but we already knew Kakashi-sensei so we already knew how to beat him at least get the bells from him" said Naruto being more modest than usual

'I didn't think they would exploit Kakashi's weakness like that now I still don't know what they can do to the fullest potential' thought Tsunade upset at the fact that she didn't get what she wanted 'I already know about Sakura's abilities since I trained her but Naruto and Sasuke are still a mystery, I now know that Sasuke upgraded his chidori and Naruto used a water style attack but that's it, I have no means of seeing how much they have improved'

"Naruto I want to fight you right here right now" declared Sasuke

"Sure I've been meaning to have a proper fight with you anyway" responded Naruto as the two entered their fighting stances

"Where did that come from?" Asked a confused Choji

"I might understand" commented Jiraiya

"Enlighten us" said Asuma

"Sure, ever since the academy Sasuke had been better than Naruto but Naruto improved far quicker than Sasuke to the points where they considered themselves equals even if Sasuke didn't admit it, And since Sasuke apparently lost their last battle, he wants to fight again to see where they currently stand"

"So Sasuke wants to prove who's stronger him or Naruto" Hinata said clearing up any confusion

"Ah!" a lot of people had said

'This could be a good way to see how strong they are' thought Tsunade "Alright you can fight at the chunin exam stadium this way we can clearly see who's stronger"

"Hn" Sasuke grunted in agreement

"Alright" Naruto agreed


	4. Chapter 4

All of their friends and comrades came to the stadium along with their teachers and superiors, and some civilians had heard of the event somehow and came to watch the fight between two teammates, rivals, friends the deadlast and the top rookie, this was the match to watch

Naruto and Sasuke were down on opposite sides of the stadium getting ready for their match, well I guess you can say Naruto was getting ready by stretching and checking what tools he had on him and Sasuke he was staring Naruto down with annoyance on his face

With the Rookie 9

"Sasuke needs to calm down or Naruto will completely dominate this fight" said Shikamaru

"What do you mean?" asked Ino

"He seems highly irritated at something but if he doesn't calm down then Naruto will use that to his advantage by messing with him and knowing Naruto he will do it on purpose" said Kiba

"But Sasuke's stronger than Naruto right, so it doesn't matter what his mental state is in" said Ino

"That would be true for any other opponent but not for Naruto" added Sakura "Naruto and Sasuke are rivals just like you and I, wouldn't you be upset that I wasn't taking you seriously as a rival"

"Yeah but we're more close to equals, they're not"

"Yes, Naruto's stronger" said Hinata

"Huh what do you mean sure Naruto won last time but Sasuke has been training non stop to beat his brother someone stronger than Naruto" said Ino

"But Naruto has been training for something higher than Sasuke, even higher than Itachi" said Hinata

"What is that?" asked Ino

"To be Hokage"

"!"

With adult Jonin

"So Kakashi you fought with both of them who do you think will win?" asked Asuma

"Hard to say Naruto was strictly using teamwork with Sakura and Sasuke to fight me so I can't gauge his skill in an one on one fight" said Kakashi

"What about Sasuke?" asked Kurenai

"He has definitely improved he knows almost as many jutsus as I do plus his switch from taijutsu to kenjutsu really fits him more than before" said Kakashi "Sasuke is really strong and I'm not ashamed to calm him my equal so it all depends on how Naruto can respond to Sasuke's moves"

After the little explanation from Kakashi more of the jonin around were now more eager for the match than ever however other thoughts were going around

With Tsunade and Jiraiya

'Team 7 had wore out Kakashi and was not even wounded even groups of jonin take a longer time to wear out Kakashi by himself, according to records when Sasuke was in anbu he did excellently and was one of their best members quickly so I easily was able to promote him because of that meaning he was at least jonin strength but Naruto...' thought Tsunade

'Naruto is my second student to say that he has truly outclassed me when it comes to skill second only to the fourth hokage, he has mastered his taijutsu incorporating things from his friends fighting styles into his own along with the frog kata makes him frightening in hand to hand combat plus that makes his shadow clones harder to deal with, He still is not the best at genjutsu but I taught him one and he knows how to dispel them so he's good in that area, Ninjutsu he may not know a lot but I like to think him as a shinobi who has a few techniques but is a master at them all plus I think he has enough experience to handle the Uchiha's numerous techniques' thought Jiraiya 'I can't wait to when he becomes Hokage then I can rest in peace'

With Naruto and Sasuke

'Naruto, my rival, my friend, the reason why I stayed in this village, the one who wants to be the Hokage, I had come to terms that I might not be able to kill my brother immediately since he has had a better and earlier start at getting stronger but if that means that you can achieve your dream then I will be alright knowing at least one of us will have achieved our goals' thought Sasuke as he finally began to move into his starting position 'Show me the results of your training!'

'Sasuke. I kind of felt bad that I had to stop you from achieving your power even if it was from the wrong person, but I felt that you belonged with us,you know team 7, the 9 rookies, everyone, I don't have the same kind of pain you have but I also have pain but I had come to peace with it I hope you do too besides the Akatsuki is after me so if you're by my side then you will come closer to achieving your goal but to make you stay I have to show you that I'm not the deadlast and I can become the best and protect my loved ones and pass on my will of fire' thought Naruto as he was finished stretching

Back with Tsunade and Jiraiya

Tsunade as she noticed that the two combatants were ready decided to give the signal "The match between Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha may begin!" announced Tsunade

Sasuke and Naruto

Sasuke had charged Naruto with his sharingan already activated showing his three tomoes in each eyes, he prepared a slash at Naruto who easily sidestepped it Sasuke followed for to what seen by others as the quickest flow of hand seals ever to spit out his Fire style phoenix flower jutsu, the fireballs were continuously shot towards Naruto who decided to avoid them by running up and across the walls of the stadium, when Sasuke stopped he ran up the walls as well and sprinted towards Naruto who already was at the other side of the stadium wall

'He definitely gotten faster'

Sasuke decided to change directions so instead of following him he will cut him off the other way, Naruto noticed this and already started to charge his rasengan already knowing what's coming next, Sasuke then started to form his chidori almost as he was reading Naruto's thoughts

"Rasengan!"

"Chidori!"

Massive explosion was formed blinding anyone trying to see through it including Hinata with her Byakugan and Shino wearing his sunglasses

'What power!'

'So strong'

'This is what it's like when two strong shinobi clash'

The explosion ended with the two jumping away from the wall inside the explosion and back onto the ground

Naruto then decided to form a rasengan again even though he was on the opposite side of the stadium too far for him to hit Sasuke

'Well I guess I got to show off what I can do sooner or later' thought as his rasengan formed

Naruto then threw the rasengan! It traveled across the whole stadium heading straight for Sasuke, Sasuke who was like everyone else in the stadium was surprised and was almost unable to dodge the attack which had made contact with the wall behind him which made a notable crater in the wall

Everyone besides Jiraiya and Naruto of course we're all thinking the same thing 'How?' or 'What just happened?'

"Jiraiya can you explain this, whenever I see you lose control of the rasengan it goes crazy or dissipates it the air" asked Tsunade already familiar with the rasengan

"It involves his toad training making it only something he and possibly I can do, he gathers natural energy so efficiently that he gathers a small amount into the rasengan he creates which allows it to travel it through the air however since it's the same size it's still quite easy to dodge" said Jiraiya who said loud enough for only Tsunade to hear

'He gathered some strange chakra into his hands for that rasengan that's probably what made it fly, I gotta pay attention to what type of chakra he's using' thought Sasuke

"How do you like that Sasuke I call it Flying Rasengan" said Naruto knowing he was just showing off

"Nice but how do you like this Chidori Sharp Spear!"

Sasuke once again charged up his chidori but he just pointed his towards Naruto and the chiori started to extend in a spear like shape all the way towards Naruto who easily dodged it even though it was quite fast, he then started to chase down Naruto by following with his hand to where Naruto was running to

Naruto then ran all the way around to the point where Sasuke had to call of his attack and engage Naruto back into combat, Sasuke not having enough time to pull his sword back out had to try to engage Naruto in taijutsu, Naruto started with a series of kicks that Sasuke was blocking as best as he could since they had almost the same power as Lee's kicks, as Naruto was kicking he flew through hand seals almost as fast as Sasuke and performed his jutsu

"Summoning Jutsu!"

And Gamakichi around human height appeared

Sasuke saw this and did his own summoning jutsu and a hawk appeared and took flight with Sasuke on it

Naruto said as he hopped on Gamakichi

"I was trying to team up on him but he can summon too so let's shoot him out the sky" Naruto said as he was readying his wind chakra

"Alright I don't like birds anyways" Gamakichi said as he was reading his water chakra"

"Wind Release: Toad Gun!" as powerful streams of water were headed towards the sky to Sasuke and his hawk who were dodging

"Chidori Senbon!" As Sasuke used his chidori once again but this time formed multiple senbon sized lightning needles raining towards Naruto

"Alright lock on" Naruto said noticing the rain of senbon heading towards him but decides to knock Sasuke out the sky first "Fire!"

One final water bullet was launched and hit Sasuke's hawk dispelling it

Naruto dispelled Gamakichi and burrowed underground with the headhunter jutsu

Sasuke landed gracefully and approached the hole Naruto made and started to let a stream of fire down the hole

Naruto appeared on almost the other side of the stadium comically putting out the flames from his backside

Naruto launched two fuma shuriken towards Sasuke

Sasuke put his chidori into his sword and swung at the first one slicing it in half and he was going to do the same to the other one but noticed that the Naruto who threw the shuriken had dispelled

The second fuma shuriken transformed back into Naruto

Naruto then decided that he might as well end this fight now while he was able to 'Kurama I'm going to borrow your power for a bit' Naruto had communicated to his bijuu, Naruto then developed a golden-orange-yellow chakra shroud with six magatama around his neck and two distinctive pieces of hair-like horns resembling the Sage of the Six Paths' silhouette along with a swirl design that resembles the Uzumaki clan's symbol. Naruto's chakra shroud is also covered by various other black lines and spiral patterns, he seemed to have flickering flames releasing from his shroud (not kurama mode)

Naruto then proceeded to deliver a combo of punches and kicks towards Sasuke from all sides in his enhanced form which he entitled "Tailed Beast Flare" since most could only follow the streams of chakra that was emitting off of Naruto as he moved resulting in blinding light, after the attack Sasuke was seen unconscious on the floor with wide eyes

"Winner by knockout Naruto Uzumaki" declared Tsunade after getting over her shock

Moments later Sasuke woke up being carried by Naruto

"Sasuke you got really strong I can see why you're a jonin, If i was going to gauge your skill against Itachi we had saw a couple of years ago I would say your even with him but he probably gotten stronger since then so you don't have that much time to wait for your revenge" said Naruto as he continued to carry him out and up the stadium until there were surrounded by everyone else

"Hn what about you if you beaten me so easily you have to be ready to be Hokage" said Sasuke not in the least bit upset that he lost, but still out of it that he doesn't notice everyone else

"Ero-sennin said that I need to polish some things up and I need experience of being a leader"

"You don't need too much experience though since if your hokage you won't be going on missions a lot, you need to get more involved in the village to earn your respect"

"Yeah I realized that, before I used to think that if I become hokage I will earn everyone's respect but it's the ones who have the respect are the ones who become hokage"

"Well said Naruto" said Kakashi as he and the others heard their little conversation "You definitely have my vote"

"Real funny Kakashi-sensei, so grandma how I do?" said Naruto a he passed Sasuke to Ino who had already begun healing him as Sakura did with him

"I grade you as a medium to high jonin on your own but with that mode easily stronger than me" said Tsunade looking at her notes from the battle "What exactly was that anyways?"

"Well you all know how the fourth hokage sealed the nine tails inside of me right?"

Everyone nodded even though it seemed that some were still getting used to the thought that there most optimistic friend has a demon inside of him

"Well the truth is, oh you can't tell anyone else this since this is vital"

"Get on with it!"

"Ok ok, well the fourth hokage only sealed half of the nine tails inside of me, well I guess a more appropriate way to say it is that he sealed the yin side inside of me" said Naruto

Everyone except for Jiraiya was shocked that only half of the nine tails but they were all wondering where the other half was

"Naruto you still need to learn that you need to complete your speech before people get worried" reprimanded Jiraiya

"Heh heh right, and the other half is sealed within the fourth hokage meaning it's gone forever meaning that the Akatsuki will never have all of the nine tails power if I do get captured" said Naruto as he scratched his head

"Captured? what do you mean captured?" asked Kiba with others surprised as well

'Oops' "Um I'll tell you all later" said Naruto trying to change the subject ignoring the prying and worrying eyes

Then Konohamaru came running out of nowhere towards Tsunade with a message that has been sealed into a scroll, you could tell it was a important message because of the type of scroll

"Lady Tsunade! Lady Tsunade! We have an urgent message from the sand village" said Konohamaru as he presented the untouched scroll to Tsunade who began to read it quickly

"What!" yelled Tsunade

"What is it Tsunade" asked Jiraiya looking over her shoulder reading over the message "Oh I see that really is something to be surprised over"

"Hey grandma what's going at Suna?" asked Naruto actually worried about Gaara

"Suna has been attacked and the Kazekage has been captured by their attackers"

"Who attacked?" asked Sakura

"Two akatsuki members, and according to them the one that attacked the Kazekage was Deidara the missing nin from Iwa and his partner which prevented them from rescuing the Kazekage was Sasori of the red sand"

'It already started huh? I need to go back on my spying and make sure nothing else has happened since I arrived back here' thought Jiraiya

"Grandma I need to go and save him let me leave now I'm ready" said Naruto as he was handed his new vest from Shizune and put it on

"I will let you leave but you need to bring a small team with you, I'm not letting you take on two akatsuki members alone" said Tsunade

"Anyone who wants to join me let me know now or else I'm leaving you all behind" Naruto said as he was organizing his tools in his vest

A few hands went up, he honestly expected more but Naruto would take what he can get

"Alright Team 7 I hope you can keep up because I'm not slowing down for anything" said Naruto

"Oh look at that little Naruto grew up and acting like he's leader, well I guess I can witness his growth myself" said Kakashi

"I won't let you down Kakashi-sensei" said Naruto

"Well I guess the idiot got a little smarter while he was away but the thick headedness is still there you just got through with two fights but you're so stubborn well I guess I'll have to give you support" said Sakura

"I appreciate it Sakura"

"I can't have you stand me up too much besides this will be good practice by taking on akatsuki members" said Sasuke

"Alright meet me at the gate in 20 minutes you better be prepared for a fight alright" said Naruto as the four of them shunshin away

Village Gate 20 min later

"I'm actually surprised Kakashi-sensei came on time" Naruto whispered to Sakura and Sasuke who only nodded in agreement

"Man you all are so mean I come on time almost all the time.." said Kakashi until he was kept quiet by some glares from his previous students "Well Naruto you're in charge so tell us the plan"

"The trip to the sand village takes about three days on foot and we probably missed at least a day if the sand village sent the message by messenger bird" said Naruto

"Meaning Gaara is well secured in the enemy's hands" said Sasuke

"Yeah but Ero-sennin had suggested I leave a toad in the sand village just in case I need to get there quickly so I'm going to summon a toad to reverse summon us to the sand village to narrow down time" said Naruto as he went through the hand seals for summoning "Summoning jutsu!"

Then a orange toad about the size of Kakashi appeared before them

"Gamakichi can you reverse summon all four of us to the toad in the sand village" asked Naruto

"I don't know it's really difficult to summon you somewhere else you know" said Gamakichi

"I brought you candy" said Naruto as he summoned a big bag of candy from a scroll in his vest

"Alright just gather around me and we will be there" said Gamakichi who noticed they all complied even if Sakura was grossed out by being next to a toad

Sand village: Gaara's Residence

They were summoned inside a rather nice and large room, with a nice view of the sand village, they could also hear the chaos going around now since the Kazekage was gone their most powerful shinobi and their jinchuuriki

"Naruto?!" said a familiar female voice

"Hey Temari sorry I used the toad in Gaara's room to get here without you guys permission is that okay?" said Naruto sheepishly as he was scratching his head in embarrassment

"No time for that now I already know you and Gaara communicate with your toads, I'm authorized to give you your mission now, Deidara and Sasori were headed west I'll come with you half the way to guide you but then you're on your own as I'm needed here" Temari had said as she walked out the building with team 7

They took a moment to heal Kankuro from the poison and Sakura to create an antidote but were still on there way out the village as Kankuro told them more exact location

As team 7 and Temari left the village on the hunt for Gaara and his Akatsuki kidnappers, many thoughts were going through team 7's heads

"Sasori is a puppet user like my brother but he's more skilled so be wary, and Deidara is a clay making explosive user he's the one that beat Gaara" Temari explained

'They were able to take down the kazekage, and these people are after Naruto as well I need to get stronger' Sakura thought

'So all of the akatsuki are strong not just my brother well I guess this could be good practice' Sasuke thought

'Akatsuki the mysterious group that Jiraiya has been researching on has finally made their move, they tried to go after Naruto years ago because he was weaker but now their first target is the Kazekage so I wonder if they're going in order of the tail beasts meaning after this is the two tails meaning there saving Naruto for last? I don't know maybe they're going by location and whatever is convenient for them now I see why Jiraiya is having trouble tracking them' Kakashi thought

'So the Akatsuki has a puppet user and a clay making explosive style user, if I remember from learning the elements clay is a earth style jutsu so lightning would be good at neutralizing him meaning Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke should handle him but they might not have the speed to catch up to him… that still leaves the puppet guy I guess me and Sakura can handle that guy'

The group made it to the hideout to discover that it was blocked by a huge boulder with a seal on it, almost as telling them that this was the place to go

Naruto and Kakashi prompted themselves to go check out the seal before they took any drastic measures, as they were doing this team Gai caught up to them and explained that they were back up since they were in the area and was able to get notified thanks to their radios

Naruto and Kakashi concluded that the seal was connected to other seals scattered around the area so team Gai volunteered to remove the seals however Naruto was being precautious had a shadow clone accompany them just in case

The seal on the boulder glowed signalling that it was okay to remove the boulder without any repercussions

"Sakura may you please remove the boulder" asked Naruto as nicely as he could

"Cha!" she yelled as she jumped with her chakra enhanced punch and decimated the boulder into piles of rubble

"Oh look here leaf shinobi came here to rescue the Kazekage" said one

"Well we might have to slow down the extraction but our victory is well secure as long as the copy ninja is the best they could send" said the other


	5. Chapter 5

Akatsuki hideout

"Oh look here leaf shinobi came here to rescue the Kazekage" said one of the Akatsuki

"Well we might have to slow down the extraction but our victory is well secure as long as the copy-nin is the best they could send" said the other member

Before they knew it Naruto had grabbed Gaara and was now carrying him on his back with the rest of team 7 guarding him

"What the?! how did you sneak past us blondie?" asked the blonde one known as Deidara

'Your blonde too...' "Well it's pretty easy I ran around you, picked up Gaara and ran back" Naruto said nonchalantly as if it was the easiest thing in the world

Sasori immediately summoned his puppet and Deidara started forming some clay for his C2 jutsu, making Team 7 tense up in anticipation of battle with two A-S rank shinobi, C2 is a massive clay dragon that Deidara is able to ride, it was at least three times as big as the shinobi it flew over and if the description on Deidara was enough it probably could explode

Naruto made a clone to handle Gaara so he can have his hands free for the upcoming fight, the clone went to go hide as if he gets involved or tries running he could be dispelled leaving Gaara defenseless, Sasuke took out his sword and activated his sharingan, Kakashi unveiled his sharingan and Sakura tightened her gloves while Naruto himself had gotten into his fighting stance, Deidara started the fight with his clay dragon flying towards them to begin

"Art is an explosion!"

With Team Gai with Naruto clones

As each member of team Gai were on their way to undo the seals they had caught up with Naruto since he has been gone for over two years, Naruto told them about his journey and how he has improved, with them informing him on what he had missed while he was gone even though he had been caught up before by his other friends he did find out some new things such as that Tenten is part of Anbu since she was wearing the clothes minus the mask but added a huge scroll on her back similar to his own sensei and Lee's rivalry with Sasuke is like Gai with Kakashi

Naruto removed the seals in paranoia that the others might get hurt by removing them, it was true the seals were not safe but the seals made an exact copy of Naruto since he was the one to touch the seals so the clones of Naruto started to attack each member of team Gai with their clone partner, Gai seemed to be able to keep up with the clones attacks but the same can't be said for his previous students, Neji was constantly being pushed back because of the clones more aggressive style which was trouble for the gentle fist, Lee was having trouble too but he was more enjoying himself than the rest since he always wanted to have an all out battle with Naruto, but Tenten was having the most trouble, even though she was able to hold her own in close combat thanks to her anbu training but it still showed that she was predominantly a long-range fighter Naruto's shadow clone transformed into a weapon to help her in the fight but it was still tough for her

Back with Team seven

The fight had separated into two fights it had became Sasori with his puppets vs Naruto and Sakura inside the cave and outside it was Deidara vs Sasuke and Kakashi

Sasori had lost his main puppet Hiruko and was already pushed into using all 100 of his puppets against them however Naruto's use of clones even the odds against them and with him and Sakura able to get the advantage pretty easily but were having trouble dealing with the poison

If you didn't know any better you would think the puppets vs the clones would be there own little war based on the numbers and each side had different colors

Naruto's taijutsu had improved a lot but Sasori's clones were still able to dispel some of them, the ace for the duo was Sakura as with her enhanced strength she was finishing puppets off with one punch each

The only problem was Sakura was having tunnel vision making Naruto have to watch her blind spots

However Sasuke and Kakashi were having a much harder time against Deidara, Deidara with the ability to use his clay in many forms such as birds and rats/mice, pushed Sasuke to the defensive meanwhile Kakashi was analyzing his opponents for any weak points

"Sasuke there seems to be a limit to how much clay he has before he needs to make some more we'll have to hold out until then you think you can last" said Kakashi

"Yeah no problem...What's that?" asked Sasuke as he looked up to see a giant object flying towards the sky

"Take this the art I used to defeat the Kazekage C3!" Deidara said on top of his C2(Clay Dragon) as he drop the clay statue as it continues to grow in size

"Um Kakashi I'll take any suggestions of how to stop this one" said Sasuke not showing any signs of being afraid but anyone can tell he was at least nervous since this was the jutsu that defeated Gaara

Kakashi's eye began to change

"Kamui!"

The bomb seems to be sucked like black hole and disappear, Kakashi then had to kneel in exhaustion with Sasuke to support on

"What was that?" Sasuke asked the copy nin

"A Mangekyo sharingan ability, I can usually use it twice a day but with that size I can't do it again leaving it up to you to defeat Deidara" Kakashi said to his student

Sasuke made a sign which Kakashi recognized as he made his way up in the trees

It was a common Anbu signal to have one leave the other to fight but to still watch their blindsides

Deidara created two clay human like figures and the charged Sasuke

"I hate fighting clones" Sasuke said as he charged his sword with lightning chakra to enhance its cutting power

Sasuke noticed how easily he was cutting the clay figures and deduced that the clay must be earth based

Sasuke used the clay figures as a stable and jumped into the air towards Deidara's clay dragon, Deidara wasn't phased as he knows a simple jump can't reach him

"Chidori: sharp spear!"

Sasuke's chidori became a spear and started to approach the dragon but Deidara noticed this and flew higher out of the reach

Deidara threw clay bombs at Sasuke which he dodged but as he started to fall he noticed the clay bombs now waiting for him on the ground

Sasuke threw his sword down and as he approached it he used his sword as a foothold to stay off the ground

Deidara tried detonating his bombs but noticed a current of electricity on the ground disabling his clay bombs

"Damn Uchiha's" Deidara muttered out

Naruto and Sakura

"Rasengan!" Naruto shouted as he grinded the spiralling sphere of chakra into Sasori's puppet body

The parts were destroyed and scattered but the main part holding Sasori's essence was starting to react

"Cha!" Sakura shouted giving Naruto no warning as she from above with her insane human strength came down and destroyed the main part

"Good job Sakura! You were awesome!" Naruto said to her which made her blush from the sudden compliment

"No thank you Naruto! I know you were covering for me when I was being careless" Sakura responded

Whenever Sakura was about to be attacked a Naruto clone would jump in the way of the attack or throw a shuriken to divert the blow saving Sakura's life many times as the puppets had blades and/or poison

"It's no problem I got to protect my friends…" Naruto said with a thumbs up

"Naruto…"

"Alright you need to check on team Gai one of my clones dispelled and they seem to need help I'll check on Sasuke and Kakashi-sensei" Naruto said as he dashed off

"Alright!"

Sakura met up with Gai first, Gai was handling his own against Naruto but this is Naruto as the tag affected him so he doesn't go to higher level of ability or technique which allows Gai to handle him

"Sakura assist Tenten, once I'm done I'll assist Neji and Lee" Gai instructed as he kicked the Naruto fake back

"Yes Gai-sensei" Sakura said

Naruto met up with Sasuke and Kakashi, only to see Sasuke handling his own against Deidara and his clay figures

"You what are you doing here where's Master Sasori?!" Deidara yelled from his clay dragon

"Destroyed!" Naruto shouted back

Deidara threw a bunch of clay bombs which Sasuke negated with Chidori senbon, after the attack Deidara fled

Sasuke started to chase after him but Kakashi jumped in his

"Let him go Sasuke, we need to return the Kazekage" Kakashi said which Sasuke begrudgingly accepted

Sasuke Kakashi and Naruto returned to Gaara which Naruto picked up and then joined Team Gai defeating there Naruto clones, Gai handled him after opening the 3rd gate, same with Lee, Tenten teamed up with Sakura to take out her clone, and Neji found an opening to use his 64 palms

"Good job team Kakashi you managed to return the Kazekage now let's enjoy our youth and race back to the sand village" Gai said as he took off with Lee right behind

"They haven't changed" Naruto said as Neji Tenten Sakura Sasuke and Kakashi nodded in agreement "Well we can't get too far behind so let's go"

As the 6 ran to the sand village they were getting closer to the village Gaara started to wake up as they didn't fully extract the tailed beast

"N-Naruto?!" Gaara said noticing the blonde ninja who's back he was on top of

"It's okay Gaara we took care of the Akatsuki and were almost back to the sand village" Naruto said focusing on his running

"Thank you" Gaara said

"No problem that's what friends are for" Naruto said as he flashed Gaara his signature grin which Gaara let a smile crack as he went back to unconsciousness


End file.
